Plans for a Somerville/Cambridge MA art/film studio

Alex Ezorsky-Lie and a fellow filmmaker are hoping to create a film/video/art studio in the Boston area. The plan is to lease a large (3,000-5,000 sq/ft) space in Somerville/Cambridge MA that would have offcies for permanent tenants, as well as a large (900 sq/ft+) studio.

I spoke briefly with Alex about the project at the latest Boston Media Makers meeting:


Q: What’s the idea behind the project?
Alex: I know of about three spaces right now in Cambridge and Somerville that are huge raw spaces between 4,000 and 6,000 sq/ft, and the rent is pretty affordable. I wanted to have at least a 900 sq/ft studio, that’s [something] I as a filmmaker would just love to have access to. And then all this other extra space is what would be useful to other people, we’d turn it into offices.

Q: What would be in the rest of the space?
Alex: We’d have 200 sq/ft office spaces where we could have video editors, sound editors, and others. The idea is they all could pay a little bit more per month on their rent and get to use this space any time they want. They could run their own production company out of this space. If you don’t want to have 200 sq/ft, you could just pitch in for a locker, keep your equipment here, and then come in and film.

Q: So you just started this?
Alex: We’re in the conceptual stage.

Q: Do you have a space in mind?
Alex: Yes.

Q: How many people do you think you need to go through with it?
Alex: If we had ten to fifteen people who could afford our mystery number, that would be good. We don’t need a down payment really. We’re thinking of taking out a loan to get it started.


At the moment he is circulating a questionnaire to gauge interest in the project:

1. How would you use the space/what do you do?
   
   
2. How much space would you need?
   
   
3. Would you need a window? Will a skylight suffice?
   
   
4. Would you need soundproofing? Sound dampening OK?
   
   
5. Would you need controlled lighting?
   
   
6. Would you use the whole office space, or would you be looking to share?
   
   
7. Would you be interested in an office (100 sq/ft), private studio (200 sq/ft) and or locked storage (8x5 ft)?
   
   
8. How much would an ideal studio cost for 200 sq/ft?
   
   
9. Would you be interested in a larger 900 sq/ft open studio, shared with other tenants? How much would you par for this monthly access?
   
   
10. Would you need parking? How important is off-street?
    
    
11. How important is access to MBTA? How far is too far?
    
    
12. Who are your ideal neighbors? Media/Traditional Arts/Mix?
    
    
13. What color walls would you want?
    
    
14. Other comments and concerns:

You can contact Alex through his website: AweSpark Productions